Health & Wellness at the Center
Low-cost options to keep you healthy inside and out.
Sonoma, California. Sonoma Community Center is expanding its health and wellness programming with several new offerings. A local chef will lead a unique demonstration-based seasonal cooking class throughout August, with participants enjoying lunch afterward. On Saturday, August 8, the Center will host a meditative sound bath journey. Then, on Monday, August 24, Insight into Health Live will offer a conversation exploring what “being healthy” actually is.
Creative Seasonal Cooking with Chef Erin Shallat will be held in the Rotary Kitchen every Monday and Wednesday until August 26. From 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., Shallat will highlight a different seasonal fruit or vegetable while exploring several ways to prepare and enjoy it. Following the class will be a casual lunch with a question-and-answer period where guests will connect, ask questions, and continue the conversation around food, wellness, and seasonal living.
With over two decades of experience in transforming nutrition into an art form, Shallat’s unique approach intertwines advanced nutritional studies with her passion for the culinary arts. The produce used in classes will be harvested from her own garden, ensuring fresh ingredients for every nourishing lunch. At just $10, this class is a deal.
Bay Area-based sound healing ensemble Journey Beyond Sound invites the community to experience “Sounds of Summer: A Meditative Sound Bath Journey – Lionsgate Edition” on Saturday, August 8, at 3:30 p.m. Timed to coincide with the annual Lionsgate Portal, a date many associate with heightened awareness, personal transformation, and new beginnings, this 75-minute immersive experience offers an opportunity to slow down, reflect, and reconnect. For a $45 registration fee, this journey features a guided meditation, followed by a live soundscape performed by an ensemble of musicians using a variety of resonant instruments to create a deeply restorative, meditative atmosphere.
Registered dietitian Allison McKeany and clinical psychologist Dr. Mary Flett will explore what it means to be healthy in a discussion on Monday, August 24, at 3:00 p.m. for $25. Together they’ll unpack the assumptions we inherit, the definitions that never quite capture the whole picture, and a more honest understanding of health that each of us curates for ourselves.
Wellness practitioner, Regina Gregor, recently began teaching the MELT Method at the Center. Held on Fridays at noon, this science-based approach created by exercise specialist Sue Hitzmann focuses on two key areas: balancing your nervous system and keeping your connective tissue healthy. When these work together properly, they support your whole body and help your mind and body communicate better. Registration is $15 per class. Gregor can also be found teaching an Essentrics class on Tuesdays at 11:00 a.m., a program that helps boost flexibility.
Ongoing movement classes offer inexpensive and drop-in-friendly options to stay fit. Monday Morning Tai Chi taught by Cathy Williamson has been a staple at the Center for many years, with the intermediate level beginning at 8:00 a.m., and beginners at 9:00 a.m. Rie Casale now offers an evening class for beginners every Thursday at 5:00 p.m. All tai chi classes are $5 collected at the door. Bilingual yoga classes with Maythe Ortiz are every Thursday at 6:30 p.m. for just $10.
The Sonoma Community Center is located at 276 East Napa Street in Sonoma. All of these classes are available for registration at SonomaCommunityCenter.org except for tai chi and yoga, which are paid at the door. Full and partial scholarships are available depending on need.
About Sonoma Community Center
The Sonoma Community Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1953 to serve the communities of Sonoma Valley with the mission of cultivating a vibrant community through extraordinary creative, cultural, and learning experiences. Originally built as the Sonoma Grammar School, which opened in 1916, the Center is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Community – Innovation – Creativity – Inclusion – Leadership
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Media Contact:
Vanessa Rognlien
Executive Director, Sonoma Community Center
[email protected]
707-931-4166
